By Clara Chooi
February 12, 2011
PETALING JAYA, Feb 12 – PKR deputy president Azmin Ali accused the Najib administration today of robbing Pakatan Rakyat’s “Buku Jingga” pledges for economic reform, adding this proved the government had admitted to the opposition’s ability to run Malaysia.
The Gombak MP(picture) pointed out that the government’s recent announcement that it would dole out RM2.492 billion to schools and education departments across the country showed that Barisan Nasional agreed with PR’s pledges.“Suddenly, they are giving better recognition to educators and want to reward them with more money. In PR’s buku jingga, we pledged to raise schoolteachers’ salaries by RM500 monthly,” he told reporters after attending a function at Hotel Singgahsana this afternoon.Azmin added that the BN government was likely to reveal more plans and policies that were similar to those contained within PR’s booklet.The Buku Jingga is the document which contains PR’s proposed reforms if it succeeds in taking over Putrajaya.Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had earlier this month dismissed the PR proposals as “too good to be true”, which had elicited a challenge to debate from the pact’s de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.“From the early days, Najib said that if we carry out our buku jingga pledges, we will bankrupt the country so we challenged him to a debate and we offered him Anwar, the former finance minister.“He should have been brave enough to face the issue but he was not. Now, quietly, they are slowly by slowly announcing PR’s policies,” he said.Azmin stressed however that he was not against the government’s implementation of the policies as they were meant to benefit the people.But, he added, if BN was incapable of coming up with its own ideas for economic reform, then PR may as well take over the government.“Why not give PR the chance to run the government, since BN is obviously using our ideas,” he said.Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced the RM2.492 billion allocation two days ago, adding that the fund wold be given to 16 state education departments and seven education ministry divisions.He also announced the government’s plans to reward school principals and teachers who have exceeded their performance beyond targets set under the education section of the National Key Results Areas.A total of 924 school principals have currently been shortlisted and stand to receive RM7,500 each. Five per cent of teachers, from the same schools as these principals, will receive RM1,800 each for their performances while the rest of the teaching staff will get RM900 each.When asked however if BN was emulating PR’s strategy to woo voters, Muhyiddin, who is also the deputy Prime Minister claimed it was the opposite.Earlier last month, Najib was again accused of copycatting PR’s buku jingga promises when he announced the government’s decision to freeze and abolish tolls for several highways.He said that there would be no toll increase for the next five years at the Karak and East Coast Phase One highways and that the toll for the East-West Link highway at the Salak and Taman Cannaught interchange in Kuala Lumpur would be abolished in May.At the time, Azmin claimed victory over the announcement, pointing out that a similar idea had already been proposed in PR’s buku jingga.PR and BN have been on intensive campaigns to woo various sections of society — especially young voters and civil servants — to vote, as speculation is rife that Najib will call for general election by the fourth quarter of this year. Sarawak state elections must be also held by the middle of the year http://bit.ly/gZNRXC
By Clara Chooi
PETALING JAYA, Feb 12 – PKR deputy president Azmin Ali accused the Najib administration today of robbing Pakatan Rakyat’s “Buku Jingga” pledges for economic reform, adding this proved the government had admitted to the opposition’s ability to run Malaysia.
The Gombak MP(picture) pointed out that the government’s recent announcement that it would dole out RM2.492 billion to schools and education departments across the country showed that Barisan Nasional agreed with PR’s pledges.
“Suddenly, they are giving better recognition to educators and want to reward them with more money. In PR’s buku jingga, we pledged to raise schoolteachers’ salaries by RM500 monthly,” he told reporters after attending a function at Hotel Singgahsana this afternoon.
Azmin added that the BN government was likely to reveal more plans and policies that were similar to those contained within PR’s booklet.
The Buku Jingga is the document which contains PR’s proposed reforms if it succeeds in taking over Putrajaya.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had earlier this month dismissed the PR proposals as “too good to be true”, which had elicited a challenge to debate from the pact’s de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
“From the early days, Najib said that if we carry out our buku jingga pledges, we will bankrupt the country so we challenged him to a debate and we offered him Anwar, the former finance minister.
“He should have been brave enough to face the issue but he was not. Now, quietly, they are slowly by slowly announcing PR’s policies,” he said.
Azmin stressed however that he was not against the government’s implementation of the policies as they were meant to benefit the people.
But, he added, if BN was incapable of coming up with its own ideas for economic reform, then PR may as well take over the government.
“Why not give PR the chance to run the government, since BN is obviously using our ideas,” he said.
Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced the RM2.492 billion allocation two days ago, adding that the fund wold be given to 16 state education departments and seven education ministry divisions.
He also announced the government’s plans to reward school principals and teachers who have exceeded their performance beyond targets set under the education section of the National Key Results Areas.
A total of 924 school principals have currently been shortlisted and stand to receive RM7,500 each. Five per cent of teachers, from the same schools as these principals, will receive RM1,800 each for their performances while the rest of the teaching staff will get RM900 each.
When asked however if BN was emulating PR’s strategy to woo voters, Muhyiddin, who is also the deputy Prime Minister claimed it was the opposite.
Earlier last month, Najib was again accused of copycatting PR’s buku jingga promises when he announced the government’s decision to freeze and abolish tolls for several highways.
He said that there would be no toll increase for the next five years at the Karak and East Coast Phase One highways and that the toll for the East-West Link highway at the Salak and Taman Cannaught interchange in Kuala Lumpur would be abolished in May.
At the time, Azmin claimed victory over the announcement, pointing out that a similar idea had already been proposed in PR’s buku jingga.
PR and BN have been on intensive campaigns to woo various sections of society — especially young voters and civil servants — to vote, as speculation is rife that Najib will call for general election by the fourth quarter of this year. Sarawak state elections must be also held by the middle of the year http://bit.ly/gZNRXC
